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As we head into prime gift- giving season, technology products top many people's gift lists. That's good news for the industry and great news for consumers. I'm continually amazed by how far digital cameras, home printers, and notebook PCs have advanced in the past few years. In this issue, we offer lots of gift-giving ideas, from our annual holiday gift guide (page 98) and our roundup of top software in After Hours to our latest list of Editors' Choices.

To go along with these picks, here's some advice for your holiday shopping.

Shop online. With so many products available online, it's a really easy and convenient way to work through your list.

Know the ultimate user. High-end gaming machines are perfect for people who casually toss off phrases like "SATA hard drives" and "DirectX 9 extensions," but are not ideal for people who just want to surf the Web and do basic productivity tasks. Even for people who want high-end systems, big differences exist among those designed for games, digital imaging, and media center tasks.

Know which products your gift will be used with. Don't team up a great camera with a lousy printer, and don't buy Far Cry for your friend the Macintosh user.

Consider giving personalized gifts. I love gadgets as much as (well, maybe more than) the next guy, but they can be impersonal. Several Web sites let you create personalized photo albums or print your photos on clothing or bags.

Remember tech support. Price and features are important to consider when buying tech products, but you should also consider the level of support and service you'll get. This is especially important when it comes to deciding where to buy your gifts. Check out our listing of vendor support and satisfaction at http://go.pcmag.com/sr.

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